You asked:

I’ve been too busy to totally unpack now that I’m back at school, and now my room is a jumbled mess. Any suggestions for getting organized?

Sometimes you have to make a big mess before you can get organized! The beginning of the school year is very hectic, so it’s understandable that finding time to unpack is difficult. There’s no quick fix to tidying your room, but here are some tips to get you started:

• Pick a corner of your room. Any corner is fine. Start there. Pick up the first item that hits your feet or brushes against your hand. Think about where you want that item to go. If you can put the item in its proper place right away, do that. Keep going back to the same corner until it’s cleared, then move to the next corner.

• Lump similar items together. If something is preventing you from putting certain things away, make neat piles of things that fall into the same category. Say your desk is blocked by a bunch of boxes and you have a stapler in your hand -- put the stapler on your bed, and put the rest of your desk supplies in the same pile with the stapler. Eventually you will clear enough stuff out of the way to start putting things where they belong.

• Prioritize what you need first. What most needs to be organized now? Is it your desk? Your clothes? Organize things based on your most immediate needs. Sift through your stuff, find what you need most and put it where it belongs. Keep moving down your list of priorities until everything is organized.

• Work in shifts. Finding time to do all of this can be hard, so don’t put unnecessary pressure on yourself. You don’t have to unpack all at once. If you have five minutes here or there, then clean for a little bit. If you prefer to work in spurts, try watching TV and cleaning during commercials.

• Motivate yourself. Telling yourself you won’t hang out with friends, go to the gym or eat dessert until you finish cleaning might push you to organize faster. Having a friend or roommate sit with you while you put your things away might make for a great conversation. Or crank up the tunes! Music is always an excellent motivator when doing mundane tasks.

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